Ondo 2024: List of 4 Key Governorship Candidates Who May Emerge Winner

• The Ondo state governorship election will be held on Saturday, November 16, according to the timetable of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)
• The election is said to be a race between the candidates of the APC, PDP, Labour Party and the SDP
• Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of the APC and Agboola Ajayi of the PDP have both served as the deputy governors to late Governor Rotimi Akeredolu

CHECK OUT: Education is Your Right! Don’t Let Social Norms Hold You Back. Learn Online with LEGIT. Enroll Now!

The people of Ondo state will be voting on Saturday, November 16, to elect a new governor. Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa's tenure in the state was coming to an end.

Governor Aiyedatiwa has mounted the throne of leadership in the state following the death of the late Governor Rotimi Akeredolu. Aiyedatiwa was serving as the late Akeredolu's deputy and was sworn in as the substantive governor of the state.

However, the Saturday election is a race between four major candidates. They are:

Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa (APC)

The governor is the candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the election. He was born on January 12, 1965, in Obe-Nla, Ilaje Local Government Area. Aiyedatiwa's educational background includes attending Saint Peter's UNA Primary School, Ikosi High School, Lagos State College of Education, University of Ibadan, Lagos Business School, and the University of Liverpool, where he earned a Master's degree in Business Administration.

Before becoming governor, Aiyedatiwa served as deputy governor under Akeredolu, with whom he joined forces after a political fallout with Alfred Agboola Ajayi in 2020. As Deputy Governor, Aiyedatiwa acted as Governor during Akeredolu's medical leave.

Aiyedatiwa's background also includes serving as a federal commissioner on the Niger Delta Development Commission and working in various business roles.

Agboola Ajayi, PDP

Agboola Alfred Ajayi is a Nigerian politician, lawyer, and businessman who served as the deputy governor of Ondo State from 2017 to 2021 alongside Governor Rotimi Akeredolu. Born on September 24, 1968, in Kiribo, Ese-Odo Local Government Area of Ondo State, Ajayi completed his primary and secondary education in the state before proceeding to Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State, where he earned a Bachelor of Law degree.

Ajayi's political career began at the age of 20 when he became the chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Old Apoi Ward 1, a position he held from 1988 to 1998. He later joined the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and served as the secretary of PDP in Ilaje/Ese Odo Local Government Area from 1998 to 1999. Ajayi's leadership qualities and contributions to his community earned him the position of chairman of Ese-Odo Local Government Area from 2004 to 2007.

In 2020, Ajayi contested the Ondo State governorship election under the Zenith Labour Party but lost. He is the flag bearer of the PDP for the 2024 Ondo State governorship election.

Sola Ebisesi - Labour Party

The Abuja Appeal Court has disqualified Olusola Ebiseni as the Labour Party's flagbearer for the upcoming Ondo State governorship election, ruling in favour of the case brought by the Labour Party against Ebiseni and two others. This decision effectively invalidates Ebiseni's candidacy just days before the election scheduled for Sunday.

It's worth noting that Ebiseni, a former commissioner under Governor Olusegun Mimiko, had defected from the PDP to the Labour Party. Born on October 1, 1960, in Ogun State to parents from Ilaje, Ondo State, Ebiseni has a strong educational background, having been an active member of the Student Union Government (SUG) at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 1980.

Akingboye Bamidele, SDP

Akingboye Benson Bamidele, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) governorship candidate for Ondo State, and his running mate, Shekoni Susan Gbemisola. Akingboye, also known as OBA, is a philanthropist, business tycoon, and technocrat with decades of national and international experience.

He hails from Okitipupa, Ondo South, and holds several certifications, including International Financial Reporting (CertIFR) and Certified Fraud Examiner. His impressive educational background includes being an alumnus of Lagos Business School and University of Heriot Walt University, Edinburg, Scotland.

Governor Aiyedatiwa approves N73k minimum wage

Legit.ng earlier reported that Ondo state governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has announced the implementation of N73,000 as the new minimum wage for workers in the state.

The N73,000 minimum wage was approved more than the N70,000 approved by the federal government.

Aiyedatiwa, the APC candidate in Ondo's November 16 governorship election, announced the development at the campaign's flag-off.